Travel briefs

Huckleberry Finn is finally getting his due.

Huck and Tom Sawyer were fictional characters based on boys Samuel Clemens knew growing up in Hannibal, Mo. Clemens, whose pen name was Mark Twain, immortalized the boys in “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”

Now the building known as the Huck Finn House is open to the public, according to the Hannibal Courier-Post newspaper.

Huck was based on Tom Blankenship, the son of a drunkard who lived in a ramshackle house near the Mississippi River. The Huck Finn House is immediately behind the home where Clemens grew up, and sits on the site where the Blankenship family lived. The original house was demolished in 1911, said David Mobley, president of the Mark Twain Home Foundation.

The family that owned the land donated it to the foundation, and the family of a former Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum official paid for the reconstruction, according to the Hannibal Courier-Post paper.

The reconstruction of the exterior “was based upon photographs taken from that period,” Mobley said.

For more information, www.marktwainmuseum.org.

From Bon Appetit: Top 10 places to eat

Something about summer makes the thought of eating out especially inviting.

The June issue of Bon Appetit magazine lists 10 restaurants as “summer’s hotspots,” new foodie destinations around the country. Prices range from $10 pizzas at Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles to the $54 and $67 prix fixe menus at Bijoux in Dallas. Here’s the full list:

Tavolata, 2323 Second Ave., Seattle, a casual Italian eatery with updated versions of hearty dishes like cannelloni, baked semolina gnocchi and veal carpaccio.

Ad Hoc, 6476 Washington St., Yountville, Calif. (Napa Valley), originated as a temporary space where chef Thomas Keller could serve “comfort food family-style with a rustic-four course prix fixe menu, priced at $45.” Try the buttermilk and rosemary fried chicken with green beans and sweet potatoes.

Pizzeria Mozza and Osteria Mozza, 641 N. Highland Ave., and 6602 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles; www.mozza-la.com. The magazine calls Pizzeria Mozza “the buzziest – and busiest – restaurant to hit Los Angeles in the past decade.” A bigger Italian restaurant, Osteria Mozza, will eventually open next door.

Radda Trattoria, 1265 Alpine Ave., Boulder, Colo., which the magazine recommends for pastas, pizza, risotto and “smart and simple” dishes like fried rock shrimp, fennel, and zucchini with garlic mayonnaise.

Aigre Doux Restaurant &Bakery, 230 W. Kinzie St., Chicago, which offers a diverse menu ranging from oxtail ravioli, Greek-style pizza and wild turbot with baby leeks.

Bijoux, 5450 West Lovers Lane, Suite 225, Dallas, www.bijouxrestaurant.com, where Bon Appetit recommends the pan-seared prawns with tempura-battered squid and chorizo, plus pumpkin sweets for dessert.

Momofuku Ssam Bar, 207 Second Ave., New York City, www.momofuku.com, a “shoebox-size noodle joint” in Manhattan’s East Village with an adventuresome menu that includes artisanal hams, grilled mackerel, pork steamed buns, and tripe soup.

Central Michel Richard, 1001 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C., www.centralmichelrichard.com. This casual bistro offers chef Michel Richard’s takes on American classics: crab cake with leek tartare; 72-hour short ribs; fried chicken with mustard sauce; lobster burger on a brioche bun.

Trois, 1180 Peachtree St., Atlanta, www.concentricsrestaurants.com, with artisanal cocktails at the ground-level bar, and classic French food like coq au vin, cassoulet and escargot upstairs, along with originals like braised oxtail with roasted scallops.

Osteria, 640 N. Broad St., Philadelphia, www.osteriaphilly.com, which Bon Appetit describes as having “soulful Italian cooking” including pizzas, pastas, porchetta, spaghetti lobster and house-made gelato.

Obvious travel tip: no guns in carry-on

Here’s a tip for summer vacationers traveling by air: No guns in your carry-on.

A common oversight the Transportation Security Administration sees at airports in Arkansas is small firearms. Usually, the person inadvertently carrying a gun has a concealed weapons permit, said Federal Security Director Jerry Henderson, and the matter is handled administratively, although there could be civil fines up to $10,000 and criminal laws might apply.

Regulations do permit transporting firearms in checked baggage, but not in carry-on, with limited exceptions for law enforcement officers. Checked firearms must be unloaded, in a locked hard-sided container, and must be declared at the check-in.

Those who haven’t flown since last summer, when many new regulations went into effect, should also familiarize themselves with what officials call the “3-1-1 rule” for more mundane items like toothpaste and shampoo.

Travelers can bring liquids, gels or aerosols in bottles of not more than three ounces; the bottles must be placed in a one-quart size clear plastic zip-top bag, and only one plastic bag is allowed per passenger.

Henderson also offers these reminders: Wear shoes that can be slipped off and on for security checks; keep boarding passes and identification cards handy, and pack so security officials can easily get items in and out of bags and luggage.

Details at www.tsa.gov.

Travel classes, seminars

Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door hosts free travel classes from 10 to 11:30 a.m. most Saturdays at the Edmonds Theater, 415 Main St., Edmonds.